No plans to have ICE officers patrol polls during midterm elections, says US officials

WASHINGTON (AP) — Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials say they don’t plan to send immigration enforcement officers en masse to patrol the polls and dismissed concerns that they plan to do so as “fear-mongering.”

With early voting already underway, a question worrying some voters is what role — if any — immigration enforcement officers might have at polling places through Election Day.

Election legal experts say federal law clearly prevents the government from deploying any armed troops, agents or officers to election sites except to “repel armed enemies of the United States,” a high bar to clear.

But organisations that represent Latino, Black and Asian American voters say the rhetoric and ICE’s own activity make them worried at a time when the number of immigration arrests is soaring as President Donald Trump carries out his mass deportation agenda.

However, a DHS official has told state election administrators that immigration agents will not be stationed at the polls for the midterm elections.

During congressional testimony earlier this year, the then-acting head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Todd Lyons, and the head of Customs and Border Protection, Rodney Scott, said they had no plans to send officers to the polls.

Lyons has since left the position.

In September, DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin accused Democrats of “fear-mongering” in raising concerns over ICE officers going to polling places.

He said officers will not patrol or monitor polling places broadly, but could go for specific reasons such as arresting someone if they have a warrant or are responding to a threat.

Earlier this year, Attorney General Todd Blanche, who was then the deputy attorney general, also weighed in on the issue, saying: “Why are there objections to sending ICE officers to polling places? Illegals can’t vote.”

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